After 3

Natural Sweet Wine – Late Harvest

Wine description
“With After 3 we are looking to make a natural sweet wine with the peculiar caratheritics of Monastrell as a grape for aging (grape use to make the Fondillon). It have only been possible to elaborate in vintages 2008, 2011 and 2016 when the weather has allowed us. For this, it is mandatory to have a September, October and November quite dry allowing the grapes a good over-ripen maduration without rots. .After 3 is elaborated from over-ripened grapes of Monastrell variety vines aged 55 years old.

Soils
Single vineyard called “La Loma”. Monastrell bush vines at 650 meters over sea level. The location stands along a slight hill allowing frequent breezes to pass along, thus drying early morning humidity. White limestone soils, with a big amount of pebbles in the top surface which naturally makes a “reservoir” of water in deep in undersoil. After some years of experience, in this vineyard when the weather allow us, the grapes achieve the over-ripenses without rot. Age of vineyards: 55 yeards old and dry agriculture.

Vinification
The harvest was implemented manually and started middle of November. The over-ripen grapes have very high sugar level, up to 19% potential alcohol. During the fermentation, the yeasts stop naturally working due to the high sugar levels, leaving behind as much as 85 gr/l residual sugar. Then, the wine is transferred to the oak barrels of 225l for a period of twelve months.

Vintage 2011
In general, it was a year relatively rich in rainfall and low temperatures. In particular, Spring and beginning of the Summer was very rainy. Nevertheless, we had late flowering.
The end of the summer, in August, brought plenty of rain, that that might be the reason why from mid September to November we had no rain and the the “”pourriture noble”” in the Monastrell grapes extended along this period and allowed us to eleborate this late harvest natural sweet wine.